Deep Water Coral Reefs of New Zealand Talk

Dr Ashley Rowden / NIWA

Dr Rowden’s talk will be about deep water coral reefs in New Zealand, which are different from shallow water reefs — with emphasis on the themes of the 2018 International Year of the Reef (threats, management, conservation and sustainable use) in a New Zealand context. He will share examples from research undertaken at NIWA.

A Special Virtual Reality Reef Demonstration

Taehyun Rhee /Associate Professor at Victoria University

Taehyun Rhee is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science at Victoria University, as well as Deputy Director of Victoria’s Computational Media Innovation Centre (CMIC), and a founder of Mixed Reality startup DreamFlux. He is a founder and director of the Victoria Computer Graphics (VCG) Lab and the founding member of Victoria’s Computer Graphics Programme, established in collaboration with Weta Digital.

DreamFlux technology provides immersive VR experiences by realistically compositing digital content into 360° video. This process is achieved in real-time, allowing for interactive content. The seamless blending of digital content into the real world in an interactive setting allows for powerful applications in education, training, entertainment and more. Dreamflux technology mitigates potential visual discomfort in VR headsets by rendering at a high frame rate (90 FPS, stereo).

If you are interested in learning more about the Treaty of Waitangi then don’t miss this eBook: An Illustrated History of the Treaty of Waitangi by Claudia Orange. You can read this eBook on our Bridget Williams Books Treaty of Waitangi Collection, by entering your library card details.

An illustrated history of the Treaty of Waitangi / Claudia Orange.
“This book builds on Claudia Orange’s award-winning Treaty of Waitangi, using a wonderful range of photographs, maps and paintings to bring the Treaty’s history to life. Depictions of key players and moments sit alongside a clear and informative text that helps explain the history of this key document. Two peoples meeting, agreements made and broken, claims and protests: all are a part of the story of the Treaty from before its signing to the present day. Never before have the Treaty’s varied stories been made so accessible the general reader” (Syndetics Summary).

Learn more about Chinese culture and language at Wellington City Libraries and Community Spaces during New Zealand Chinese Language Week! Experience Chinese culture with our programme of free events, including brilliant dance and music performances.2017年 新西兰中文周，请点击阅读

Chinese language lesson, Central Library 12:00-1:00 pm, 16 October
Here’s your perfect opportunity to learn Chinese from an indigenous speaker at the Central Library. You will learn basic communication words and essential greetings and phrases. Plus, you will receive the librarian’s recommended books and resources for you to continue your language journey after the class.

Central library tour in Mandarin, Central Library: 12:00-1:00 pm, 19 October
Situated in the heart of the city, Wellington Central Library is also a hub of knowledge and local information. Join our library tour in Mandarin (bookings are essential) and discover the wide range of services in Chinese — including books, magazines and DVDs — and see what’s available online through our library website (eBooks and newspapers in Chinese!). Please call the information desk on 801-4068 or 801-4083 (Chinese) to book.

Read Chinese magazines online with Wellington City Libraries DragonSource database Central Library: 1:00-2:00 pm, 19 October
Come to the Central Library and see a demo of how to access some of the most popular Chinese magazines on big screen, laptop or your own digital device! Phoenix Weekly, Readers, San Lian life magazine, and many more are available to access with your library card.

Dance, martial arts, calligraphy and music instrument performance, Central Library: 11:00am-12:00 pm, 21 October, by China Culture Centre of New Zealand and New Zealand Chinese Culture & Art Association
Enjoy a snapshot of Chinese culture and history through artistically presented dance, music, songs, martial arts, and calligraphy performances. A wonderful show all will enjoy!

Free Chinese character colouring pages will be available at all libraries and community centres during New Zealand Chinese Language Week.

Read Chinese newspapers and books online
Don’t forget you can celebrate from home and test your Chinese language skills by reading the latest Chinese language newspapers online via PressReader and New York Times (Chinese language version). If you’d rather enjoy a novel, you can download or read Chinese eBooks via Overdrive. All for free with your library card!

Thorndon : Wellington and home : my Katherine Mansfield project / Kirsty Gunn.
“For London-based writer Kirsty Gunn, returning to the city of her birth to spend a winter in a tiny colonial cottage in Thorndon is an exciting opportunity to walk the very streets and hills that Katherine Mansfield left behind on her departure from New Zealand, but later longed to revisit. For Mansfield, Gunn writes, home was an instant ‘go-to’ zone for invention and narrative and characterisation and setting. For Gunn, home is now two places – Here and there the same place after all.” (Syndetics summary)

Enjoy poetry and plays from New Zealand, religion and stories of women believers, American secret agent 110, and science of medicine and the mind. Also meet Libby, the new app for Overdrive’s eBooks and eAudio books.

Library News

Literature

Poetry and plays are the focus of this month’s picks, including the much anticipated Poetry 17, the New Zealand poetry yearbook. A newly-published notebook of a road trip undertaken in the American South by Joan Didion and a novel study of the powerful attraction of Sylvia Plath complement the list.

Poetry New Zealand yearbook. 2017 / edited by Jack Ross.
“Continually in print since 1951, when it was established by leading poet Louis Johnson, this annual collection of new poetry, reviews and essays is the ideal way to catch up with the latest poetry from established and emerging New Zealand poets. Issue #51 features 128 new poems by writers including featured poet Elizabeth Morton, Riemke Ensing, Mohamed Hassan, Michele Leggott, Kiri Piahana-Wong and Elizabeth Smither.” (Syndetics summary)

Falstaff : give me life / Harold Bloom.
“From Harold Bloom, one of the greatest Shakespeare scholars of our time comes “a timely reminder of the power and possibility of words [and] the last love letter to the shaping spirit of Bloom’s imagination” (front page, The New York Times Book Review ) and an intimate, wise, deeply compelling portrait of Falstaff–Shakespeare’s greatest enduring and complex comedic characters.” (Syndetics summary)

Molly Keane : a life / Sally Phipps.
“Molly Keane (1904 – 96) was an Irish novelist and playwright (born in County Kildare) most famous for Good Behaviour which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Hailed as the Irish Nancy Mitford in her day; as well as writing books she was the leading playwright of the ’30s, her work directed by John Gielgud. Between 1928 and 1956, she wrote eleven novels, and some of her earlier plays, under the pseudonym M.J. Farrell.” (Syndetics summary)

Maya Angelou : adventurous spirit / Linda Wagner-Martin.
“A comprehensive biographical and critical reading of the works of American poet and memoirist Maya Angelou (1928-2014). Linda Wagner-Martin covers all six of Angelou’s autobiographies, as well as her essay and poetry collections, while also exploring Angelou’s life as an African American in the United States, her career as stage and film performer, her thoughtful participation in the Civil Rights actions of the 1960s, and her travels abroad in Egypt, Africa, and Europe.” (Syndetics summary)

“Curbing catastrophe : natural hazards and risk reduction in the modern world / Timothy H. Dixon.
“What does Japan’s 2011 nuclear accident have in common with the 2005 flooding of New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina? This thought-provoking book presents a compelling account of recent and historical disasters, both natural and human-caused, drawing out common themes and providing a holistic understanding of hazards, disasters and mitigation. The book shows how billions of dollars and countless lives could be saved by adopting longer-term thinking for infrastructure planning and building, and argues that better communication is vital in reducing global risks and preventing future catastrophes.” (Syndetics summary)

Well, you did ask : why the UK voted to leave the EU / Michael Ashcroft & Kevin Culwick.
“The UK’s vote to leave the European Union shocked the world – not to mention many people in Britain. What it revealed about our country is at least as significant for the future of politics as Brexit itself. Drawing on more than two years of intensive research by Lord Ashcroft Polls, Well, You Did Ask explains how voters came to make the most momentous political decision of our time – how they saw the choice before them, what they made of the campaign, its personalities, claims and counterclaims – and why they ultimately chose to take the UK out of the EU. To think clearly about what the referendum result means, we first need to understand how it came about. The answers are in this book.” (Syndetics summary)

The man with the poison gun : a Cold War spy story / Serhii Plokhy.
“In 1961, a KGB agent defected to West Germany. The 30-year-old man in police custody had papers in the name of an East German, Josef Lehmann, but claimed his real name was Bogdan Stashinsky, a citizen of the Soviet Union. On the orders of his KGB bosses, he had traveled on numerous occasions to Munich, where he singlehandedly tracked down and killed two enemies of the communist regime. He used a new, specially designed secret weapon–a spray pistol delivering liquid poison that, if fired into the victim’s face, killed without leaving any trace. In 1962, after spilling his secrets to the CIA, Stashinsky was put on trial in what would be the most publicized assassination case in Cold War history.” (Adapted from publisher’s description)

Programmed inequality : how Britain discarded women technologists and lost its edge in computing / Marie Hicks.
“In 1944, Britain led the world in electronic computing. By 1974, the British computer industry was all but extinct. What happened in the intervening thirty years holds lessons for all post-industrial superpowers. In Programmed Inequality, Marie Hicks explores the story of labor feminization and gendered technocracy that undercut British efforts to computerize. That failure sprang from the government’s systematic neglect of its largest trained technical workforce simply because they were women. Hicks explains why, even today, possessing technical skill is not enough to ensure that women will rise to the top in science and technology fields.” (adapted from Syndetics summary)

Religion & Beliefs

A strong feminine focus is featured in this month’s selections, but from widely different viewpoints. Read about Dominican sisters in NZ, the life of Buddhist nun Freda Bedi, or the latest title by best-selling author Ann Voskamp.

The broken way : a daring path into the abundant life, by Ann Voskamp.
Best-selling author Ann Voskamp contemplates her own brokenness and asks: Is it really possible to live abundantly? Can we be whole? “This one’s for the busted ones who are ready to bust free, the ones ready to break molds, break chains, break measuring sticks, and break all this bad brokenness with an unlikely good brokenness. You could be one of the Beloved who is broken — and still lets yourself be loved.” (publisher’s summary)

Grace, not perfection : embracing simplicity, celebrating joy, by Emily Ley.
“When Ley realized she could not do it all, at least not well – she began to simplify her life and prioritize her goals. Instead of holding herself to a picture-perfect standard, the author extended grace to herself and was able to give mental and physical space to those ambitions which mattered most. In a friend-to-friend tone, she advises investing in oneself, surrendering control, and cultivating contentment and gratitude. Simple exercises and response blanks follow each chapter. VERDICT A powerful antidote to society’s pressure to have all and be all to everyone.” (Library Journal, courtesy of Syndetics)

Women who knew Jesus, by Bonnie Ring.
Women were seen as low status citizens whose testimony couldn’t be trusted in court. The author paints a picture of Jesus interacting with women – becoming friends, and healing or teaching them. This mixes anecdotes, biblical commentary and short meditations to help readers engage with the stories.

History

This month’s selections contain a few updated histories, including Andrew Marr’s A History of Modern Britain now covering the Brexit vote and aftermath, and a new version of Jeff Evans’ Polynesian Navigation and the Discovery of New Zealand. Old and new conflicts also go under the microscope, with World War II revisited from several perspectives, while Michael Zacchea’s The Ragged Edge looks at the rebuilding of Iraq’s armed forces and the insurgency that would later develop into ISIS.

The history of the future : American essays / Edward McPherson.
“In The History of the Future, McPherson reexamines American places and the space between history, experience, and myth. Private streets, racism, and the St. Louis World’s Fair; fracking for oil and digging for dinosaurs in North Dakota boomtowns-Americana slides into apocalypse in these essays, revealing us to ourselves.” (Syndetics summary)

Notes from the blockade, and, A story of pity and cruelty / Lydia Ginzburg
“From her experience as a survivor of the 900-day siege of Leningrad, Lidiya Ginzburg has created a remarkable hero in whom she distils the experience of life under siege. Though she depicts the harrowing conditions, the reader takes away an impression of the dignity, vitality, and intellectual resilience of the thinking mind as it makes sense of extreme experience. This classic work of documentary fiction will be the first introduction of a major 20th-century Russian writer to many English-language readers.” (adapted from Syndetics summary)

Agent 110 / Scott Miller.
“In November 1942, American spymaster Allen Dulles slipped into Switzerland. His mission: to report on the inner workings of the Third Reich. Code-named Agent 110 by the OSS, he discovered a network of Germans conspiring to overthrow Hitler. Aided by his mistress, an American journalist, Dulles built a network of secret agents and became convinced that Moscow aimed to dominate postwar Europe. He desperately sought Washington’s support in Operation Valkyrie, and worked with a ruthless Nazi SS general to secure the surrender of all German forces in Italy. Dulles himself would eventually lead the CIA during the Cold War, driven by his wartime distrust of the Soviets.” (Abridged from Syndetics summary)

Polynesian navigation and the discovery of New Zealand / Jeff Evans ; foreword by Francis Cowan.
“Polynesian navigation and the discovery of New Zealand offers a straightforward account of how and why Polynesian seafarers made their journey south to New Zealand shores. The first part discusses the origins of the voyages, legends of the homeland and the explorer Kupe, traditional Polynesian navigation techniques, and the preservation of seafaring knowledge by Māori. The second part presents a gripping account of the canoe Hawaiki-nui retracing the route from Tahiti to New Zealand in 1985 using traditional voyaging methods.” (Library catalogue)

And the monkey learned nothing : dispatches from a life in transit / Tom Lutz.
“Without an itinerary and without a goal, Tom Lutz is on a mission to visit every country on earth, describing personal encounters in rarely visited spots and anecdotes from way off the beaten path. With an eye out for both the sublime and the ridiculous, Lutz falls, regularly, into the instant intimacy of the road with random strangers.” (Syndetics summary)

Science

This month, explore areas of medical science that are often overlooked, such as sense of taste and the science of flavour, and research into compulsive behaviour. Take a look at the groundbreaking research of a Nobel Prize Winner, and at the history of antibiotics and how it changed humanity’s relationship with nature. Books on menopause, anxiety and postpartum depression are also showcased this month, so make sure you have a browse!

Wild coast : a celebration of the places where land meets sea / Marianne Taylor.
“This book is a celebration of the wildlife and landscapes of Britain’s coastline. Sheer limestone crags resound with the voices of thousands of bickering seabirds; endless acres of estuarine mud are packed with squirming invertebrates that sustain thousands of wading birds. In between are the dazzling chalk outcrops of the south coast with glorious floral communities on the clifftop meadows, shingle beaches where terns and plovers hide their eggs among the stones, and dune systems bound together with marram grass and supporting a unique and fragile ecosystem. Beautifully illustrated with colour photographs and authoritative text, this book is a celebration of the wilder aspects of the UK’s coasts.” (Syndetics summary)

Voices in the ocean : a journey into the wild and haunting world of dolphins / Susan Casey.
“While swimming off the coast of Maui, Susan Casey was surrounded by a pod of spinner dolphins. It was a profoundly transporting experience, and it inspired her to embark on a two-year global adventure to explore the nature of these remarkable beings and their complex relationship to humanity. Casey ends her narrative on the island of Crete, where millennia-old frescoes and artwork document the great Minoan civilization, a culture which lived in harmony with dolphins, and whose example shows the way to a more enlightened coexistence with the natural world.” (Syndetics summary)

Miracle cure : the creation of antibiotics and the birth of modern medicine / William Rosen.
“As late as the 1930s, virtually no drug intended for sickness worked; doctors could set bones, deliver babies, and offer palliative care. That all changed in less than a generation with the discovery and development of a new category of medicine known as antibiotics. William Rosen captures this scientific revolution with all its false starts, lucky surprises, and eccentric characters. Timely, engrossing, and eye-opening, this is a must-read science narrative combining science, technology, politics, and economics to illuminate the reasons behind one of the most dramatic changes in humanity’s relationship with nature in history!” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

On edge : a journey through anxiety / Andrea Petersen.
“A wry, sympathetic, bracingly honest account of living with anxiety, coupled with deep reportage on the science of anxiety disorders. Andrea Petersen was first diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at the age of twenty, and began a journey that took her from psychiatrists’ offices to yoga retreats to the Appalachian Trail. Woven into Petersen’s personal story is a fascinating look at the biology of anxiety and the groundbreaking research that might point the way to new treatments. Brave and empowering, this is essential reading for anyone who knows what it means to live on edge.” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

Can’t just stop : an investigation of compulsions / Sharon Begley
“Do you check your smartphone continuously for messages? Or perhaps do the weekly shop with military precision? Maybe you always ensure the cutlery is perfectly lined up on the table? Compulsion is something most of us have witnessed in daily life. Sharon Begley’s meticulously researched book is the first of its kind to examine the science behind both mild and extreme compulsive behaviour; using fascinating case studies to understand their deeper meaning and reveal the truth about human compulsion.” (Adapted Amazon Review)

If our bodies could talk : a guide to operating and maintaining a human body / James Hamblin, M.D
“In 2014, James Hamblin launched a series of videos for The Atlantic called “If Our Bodies Could Talk.” Now Hamblin explores the stories behind health questions that never seem to go away such as: Can I “boost” my immune system? Does caffeine make me live longer? Do we still not know if cell phones cause cancer? How much sleep do I actually need? In considering these questions, he draws from his own medical training and from hundreds of interviews with distinguished scientists and medical practitioners.” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

Have you met Libby? Libby is the new reading app for Overdrive’s eBooks and eAudio books. Also check out this month’s recent picks for fancy and healthy recipes, religion books with a feminine focus, self-help books for reducing stress, and the science behind taste!

Library News

Cooking

Making and enjoying healthy meals doesn’t have to be difficult, time consuming, boring or expensive. Make life easy with this collection of healthy recipes cookbooks.

Good to Glow : feel good food / Tali Shine, Steph Adams.
“This book is your guide to the world’s hippest and most delicious, healthy and organic cafes! It features unique and exclusive recipes and signature dishes from destination spots handpicked by the author, Tali Shine. You will find mouth-watering recipes for juices and smoothies, brunches, dinners, as well as sweets and treats. Good to Glow is your go-to travel and health guide that will get you on the road to a glowing lifestyle. With numerous useful health advice and tips from the real experts and a glossary for global locations in one separate chapter.” (Syndetics summary)

Superfoods Super Fast / by Michael van Straten & Barbara Griggs.
“This book is for anyone who wants fuel their body with superfoods and needs to do it super fast! It’s packed with 100 amazingly nutritious recipes to make in 210 minutes or less… Julie Montatagu’s vegetarian recipes are fast, simple and specially designed for busy people who love to eat deliciously healthy food.” (Book Jacket)

Religion and beliefs

A strong feminine focus is featured in this month’s selections, but from widely different viewpoints. Read about Dominican sisters in NZ, the life of Buddhist nun Freda Bedi, or the latest title by best-selling author Ann Voskamp.

Windows on a women’s world : the Dominican Sisters of Aotearoa New Zealand, by Susannah Grant.
10 Dominican sisters arrived in Dunedin in 1871, and for the first 100 years here the sisters were teaching nuns, living in large enclosed convents cut off from the outside world. But when the Second Vatican Council ushered in a period of radical change, they moved into small homes in local neighbourhoods, with new roles in education, social justice, pastoral care and spirituality. Grant completed a large number of oral histories with the sisters, and describes this transformation. (based on publisher’s summary)

Love hurts : Buddhist advice for the heartbroken, by Lodro Rinzler.
Lodro Rinzler has good news for those suffering heartbreak: the 2,500-year-old teachings of the Buddha have much to say about emotional pain. “In this short and compact first-aid kit for a broken heart, he walks you through the cause and cure of suffering, with much practical advice for self-care as you work to survive a breakup.” (publisher)

Women who knew Jesus, by Bonnie Ring.
Women were seen as low status citizens whose testimony couldn’t be trusted in court. The author paints a picture of Jesus interacting with women – becoming friends, and healing or teaching them. This mixes anecdotes, biblical commentary and short meditations to help readers engage with the stories.

Health

This month, explore areas of medical science that are often overlooked, such as sense of taste and the science of flavour, and research into compulsive behaviour. Take a look at the groundbreaking research of a Nobel Prize Winner, and at the history of antibiotics and how it changed humanity’s relationship with nature. Books on menopause, anxiety and postpartum depression are also showcased this month, so make sure you have a browse!

Flavor : the science of our most neglected sense / Bob Holmes.
“Can you describe how the flavor of halibut differs from that of red snapper? How the taste of a Fuji apple differs from a Spartan? For most of us, this is a difficult task: flavor remains a vague concept that we don’t know enough about to describe, or appreciate fully. Journey into the surprising science of the sense of flavor with veteran New Scientist correspondent Bob Holmes as he outlines narrative principles in neurobiology and modern food production to reveal the broad range of factors that can affect one’s appreciation of what we consume.” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

The telomere effect : a revolutionary approach to living younger, healthier, longer / Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD ; Elissa Epel, PhD.
“The New York Times bestselling book coauthored by the Nobel Prize winner Dr Elizabeth Blackburn who discovered telomerase and telomeres’ role in the aging process and health psychologist Dr Elissa Epel, who has done original research into how specific lifestyle and psychological habits can protect telomeres, slowing disease and improving life. The Telomere Effect explains this groundbreaking research and how we can make simple changes to keep our chromosomes and cells healthy, allowing us to stay disease-free longer and live more vital and meaningful lives.” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

Sod sitting, get moving! : getting active in your 60s, 70s and beyond / Diana Moran and Muir Gray.
“Sod Sitting, Get Moving! is the must-have guide to keeping fit and healthy in your sixties, seventies and beyond. As we get older too many of us spend our time sitting and not exercising. This is a call to arms, a bonfire of the slippers! With easy exercise ideas created by Green Goddess and health and fitness expert Diana Moran, with text from Sir Muir Gray, author of the bestselling Sod Seventy!, this is the perfect present for yourself, or for anybody turning sixty, seventy or eighty!” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

Things that helped : essays / Jessica Friedmann.
“In this stunning collection, Jessica Friedmann navigates her journey through postpartum depression after the birth of her son. Drawing on critical theory, popular culture, and personal experience, her wide-ranging essays touch on class, race, gender, and sexuality, as well as motherhood, creativity, and mental illness. Occasionally confronting, but always powerfully moving and beautifully observed, Things That Helped charts Jessica’s return into the world: a slow and complex process of reassembling what depression fractured, and sometimes broke.” (Adapted Syndetics Review)

Personal Development

This month, take a look at different ways of thinking and managing your life, explore the importance of habits and find simple exercises for building new routines. Find ways to manage stress and anxiety with a focus on positive thinking, kindness, generosity and fun! Then perhaps consider this advice for self-improvement from an entirely different angle, rejecting the urge for self improvement by urging self acceptance.

365 ways to live generously : simple habits for a life that’s good for you and for others / Sharon Lipinski.
“365 Ways to Live Generously features lessons each day that focus on one of the seven generosity habits: Physical health, Mindfulness, Relationships, Connecting with yourself, Gratitude, Simplicity and Philanthropy. Each habit appears once a week, giving you a year to practice and make them all a part of your daily life. Learn why the habits are important, discover tips based on the latest research about making positive change, and explore simple exercises for building new routines.” (Adapted Syndetics summary)

Stand firm : resisting the self-improvement craze / Svend Brinkman ; translated by Tam McTurk.
“How can we resist today’s obsession with introspection and self-improvement?In this witty and bestselling book, Danish philosopher and psychologist Svend Brinkmann argues that we must not be afraid to reject the self-help mantra and “stand firm”. The secret to a happier life lies not in finding your inner-self but in coming to terms with yourself. By encouraging us to stand firm and get a foothold in life, this insightful anti-self-help guide offers a sobering and realistic alternative to life-coaching, positive thinking and the need always to say yes!” (Provided by publisher)

Notes from the sick room / Steve Finbow.
“Incapacity provides time for contemplation and creativity yet pain and discomfort detract from inspiration. Serious illness confronts the individual with the reality of death, the complacency of being is jolted by the shock of non-being. Notes from the Sick Room is an investigation into the connections between physical illness and creativity, concentrating on physical illness – cancer, HIV, tuberculosis and disabilities caused by accidents. ” (adapted from Amazon)

Life after loss : a practical guide to renewing your life after experiencing major loss / Bob Deits. “One of the classics in the field of crisis intervention” (Dr. Earl Grollman), Life after Loss is the go-to resource for anyone who has suffered a significant life change. Loss can be overwhelming, and recovery often seems daunting, if not impossible. With great compassion and insight, Deits provides practical exercises for navigating the uncertain terrain of loss and grief, helping readers find positive ways to put together a life that is necessarily different, but equally meaningful. (adapted from Amazon)

Hear an inspiring talk by Kenny McFadden (Steven Adams’ coach) on how he changed a young man’s life with basketball; listen to Anne Else talking about memories of New Zealand cooking and baking based on her world-renowned book: The colour of food: a memoir of life, love & dinner, and get energized by having a go at Pilates with Anne from Thrive Pilates.
All events are free to attend, located on the warm Central Library ground floor.

Author talk by Anne Else: The Colour of Food, a memoir of life, love & dinner

Wellington author Anne Else will be sharing her inspirations of food based on her internationally renowned book: The colour of food : a memoir of life, love & dinner / Anne Else.
“She has the writer’s instinct for a good story and the editor’s keen eye for accuracy and brevity… This is a disarmingly intimate life account that fast forwards and winds back as she savors and suffers a life of friendship, motherhood, love, loss and mealtimes.”- Susette Goldsmith, Listener [sourced from Amazon.com]

Anne Else is a New Zealand writer, editor, blogger, and the author or co-author of five books on women and social history. In 2004 she was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to literature. The Colour of Food is her first book about her own story.

Have a go with Pilates at Wellington Central Library. Anne from Thrive Pilates will teach you how to do Pilates, so wear your comfy clothes and start exercising on the floor.
Pilates is an exercise system that focuses on stretching and strengthening the whole body to improve balance, muscle-strength, flexibility and posture. Thrive Pilates has given pilates a modern twist and is a fun way for you to achieve core control, alignment, precision, axial elongation, breathing, concentration and movement integration.

12-1 pm, Monday 17 July,
Wellington Central Library Ground Floor.

Kenny McFadden talk: Basketball

Kenny McFadden was awarded Sports Legend of Wellington in 2014 and was introduced to the Hall of Fame. He is the coach who had changed Steven Adams from a troubled youth to an NBA star in the OKC Thunder team. Kenny McFadden was a “player-coach” of the Wellington Saints he took the team to 7 straight finals appearances winning 5 NBL titles from 1982 to 1988. Kenny founded Hoop Club, the largest basketball club in New Zealand. Kenny was the head coach for the Junior Tall Blacks, taking them to the FIBA U19 World Championships in 2009 in Auckland. Kenny is also the president of the Wellington Basketball Association. Join Kenny McFadden for his inspiring talk about how he had changed a young person’s life through basketball.

Library News

DVDs

New DVDs include Bryan Cranston in the autobiographical ‘The Infiltrator’, an adaptation of the hugely popular novel ‘The Girl on the Train’, new seasons of ‘Elementary’ & ‘Wayward Pines’ and a new quirky Italian mystery series.

The infiltrator.
“Bryan Cranston stars in this crime drama based on US Customs official Robert Mazur’s autobiography. The film follows Mazur (Cranston) as he goes undercover to infiltrate the money laundering operations of drug lord Pablo Escobar. Assuming the identity of successful businessman Bob Musella, Mazur promotes himself as the man who can turn dirty cash into clean. By laundering money for the drug cartels he hopes he will be led directly to the most powerful men at the top of the chain. In his new role as an undercover agent, Bob sets up complex networks of investments to protect the drug dealers’ money and as he works his way up Escobar’s organisation he is forced to go to new lengths to protect his cover and continue his mission.” (Product Description, Amazon.co.uk)

The girl on the train.
“Rachel, devastated by her recent divorce, spends her daily commute fantasising about the seemingly perfect couple who live in a house that her train passes every day, until one morning she sees something shocking happen there and becomes entangled in the mystery that unfolds. The Girl On The Train is a darkly addictive thriller based on the international publishing phenomenon.” (Product Description, Amazon.co.uk)

Blood father.
“After her drug kingpin boyfriend frames her for stealing a fortune in cartel cash, 17 year old LYDIA goes on the run, with only one ally in this whole wide world: her perennial screw-up of a dad, JOHN LINK, who’s been a motorcycle outlaw, and a convict in his time, and now is determined to keep his little girl from harm and, for once in his life, do the right thing…” (Product description, Amazon.co.uk)

Wayward Pines. The complete second season
“Season two finds the residents of Wayward Pines battling for the survival of the human race against the iron-fisted rule of the First Generation. As the mysteries of the remote town deepen, secrets are unearthed and horrors discovered. Who will survive the civil war in Wayward Pines?” (Syndetics summary)

Film and television books

New books on movies and TV offer a great summer read in a wide variety of topics. They include the lovely biography about Bill Murray and the official guide book of the much-loved TV series Outlander. A Star is Born and The Fashion of Film can be fantastic coffee table books. Check them out!

The Tao of Bill Murray : real-life stories of joy, enlightenment, and party crashing / by Gavin Edwards ; illustrations by R. Sikoryak.
“People love Bill Murray movies, but even more, they love crazy stories about Bill Murray out in the world. For The Tao of Bill Murray: Real-Life Stories of Joy, Enlightenment, and Party Crashing, best-selling author Gavin Edwards tracked down the best authentic Bill Murray stories. People savour these anecdotes; they consume them with a bottomless hunger; they routinely turn them into viral hits. The book not only has the greatest hits of Bill’s eye-opening interactions with the world, it puts them in the context of a larger philosophy (revealed to the author in an exclusive interview): Bill Murray is secretly teaching us all how to live our lives.” (Syndetics summary)

The making of Outlander : the series : the official guide to seasons one & two / Tara Bennett ; introduction by Diana Gabaldon.
“Get an exclusive look behind the scenes of the first two seasons of Outlander with this official, fully illustrated companion to the hit Starz television series based on the bestselling novels. Best of all, The Making of Outlander offers a veritable feast of lavish photographs–including an array of images spotlighting the stars in all their characters’ grandeur and up-close personal portraits. Featuring an introduction by Diana Gabaldon herself, this magnificent insider’s look at the world of the Outlander TV series is the companion all fans will want by their side.” (Syndetics summary)

A star is born : the moment an actress becomes an icon / George Tiffin.
“Marlene Dietrich, Marilyn Monroe, Catherine Deneuve… Feted, adored and desired, successful movie actresses are icons of modern culture. But what was it that made them true stars? Was it looks, talent, drive, personality – or just plain luck? What was the first captivating image or unforgettable line that etched them indelibly on our collective memory – and transformed the screen actress of the passing movie credit into the screen goddess of eternal legend? In a sequence of elegant pen-portraits, George Tiffin takes a microscope to the movies and the moments that established 75 female icons of cinema. These penportraits are supplemented by quotes, notes and anecdotes, including script excerpts from key scenes. A STAR IS BORN is a seductive celebration of the eternal feminine at the heart of the movie business – and an informal and engaging history of cinema itself.” (Syndetics summary)

The fashion of film : how cinema has inspired fashion / Amber Butchart.
“The Fashion of Film is the perfect book for the fashion fan. In it, fashion historian Amber Butchart takes a journey through the last 100 years of cinema style and its influence on the catwalks. With beautiful imagery and thoroughly-researched text, she looks at how our most iconic movies have transformed the world of high fashion. Karl Lagerfeld was influenced by the dystopian vision of Metropolis, the picture-perfect world of Wes Anderson’s films are echoed in the collections of Miuccia Prada, and Audrey Hepburn was key to Hubert de Givenchy’s work. Fashion designers have long taken their inspiration from silver screen idols, and continue to do so today.” (Syndetics summary)

Books on popular music

New books on popular music feature some Aussie stuff; intriguing inside stories of Midnight Oil and The Go-Betweens, and Dig: Australian rock and pop music, 1960-85 would be the perfect accompaniment to them. As always, fantastic biographies, this time about legends such as Brian Wilson, Phil Collins and Johnny Marr, have been added. Check them out!

Dig : Australian rock and pop music, 1960-85 / David Nichols ; foreword by Dave Graney.
“A comprehensive and highly readable history of the first quarter-century of Australian rock and pop music, Dig appeals to everyone with more than a passing interest in rock ‘n’ roll. Those whose knowledge of Australian rock and pop does not extend far beyond the Easybeats, AC/DC, Little River Band and Nick Cave can discover a wealth of music beyond those star names; while even those familiar with the work of the Missing Links, Pip Proud, Radio Birdman and the Moodists learn much about the scenes and connections that produced these bands and dozens of others.” (Syndetics summary)

Midnight Oil : the power and the passion / Michael Lawrence.
“Midnight Oil are one of the most ‘Australian’ rock bands this country has produced. Born from the Australian pub rock scene that gave us AC/DC, Cold Chisel and INXS, the Oils were able to break out of that scene without compromising themselves in any way. Indeed, their breakthrough overseas record was the most Australian album they made. But it wasn’t just the subject matter that made them fiercely Australian; it was their stubborn independence, and their refusal to play the rock’n’roll game and respect its rules and masters.” (Adapted from Syndetics summary)

I am Brian Wilson : a memoir / Brian Wilson ; with Ben Greenman.
“I Am Brian Wilson reveals as never before the man who fought his way back to stability and creative relevance, who became a mesmerizing live artist, who forced himself to reckon with his own complex legacy, and who finally completed Smile, the legendary unfinished Beach Boys record that had become synonymous with both his genius and its destabilization. Today Brian Wilson is older, calmer, and filled with perspective and forgiveness.” (Syndetics summary)

Not dead yet : the memoir / Phil Collins.
“Not Dead Yet is Phil Collins’s candid, witty, unvarnished story of the songs and shows, the hits and pans, his marriages and divorces, the ascents to the top of the charts and into the tabloid headlines. As one of only three musicians to sell 100 million records both in a group and as a solo artist, Collins breathes rare air, but has never lost his touch at crafting songs from the heart that touch listeners around the globe. This is Phil Collins as you’ve always known him, but also as you’ve never heard him before.” (Syndetics summary)

Classical Music

This week we throw the spotlight on some new Bach arrivals, some astonishing pieces of great Baroque music.

Goldberg Variations, J. S. Bach. Performed by Beatrice Rana.
“In the wake of unanimous critical acclaim for her recording debut in concertos by Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky, Beatrice Rana responds with a courageous solo outing, exploring Bach’s masterwork in the variation form with a rewarding, personal journey through the composer’s incredible contrapuntal writing and the range of the emotional worlds distilled in each of the Aria’s 30 permutations” (cover).

Organ Works, volume 2, J. S. Bach. Performed by Masaaki Suzuki.
“For [this volume], Suzuki returned to more familiar ground – the chapel of the Kobe Shoin Women’s University where the great majority of his recordings with Bach Collegium Japan have taken place. The chapel houses a French classical organ built in 1983 by Marc Garnier, and on it Suzuki performs a highly symmetrical programme with the large-scale chorale partita BWV 768 at its centre. The work is known as ‘Sei gegrüßet, Jesu gütig’, although the chorale text that it is structured upon most probably is that of ‘O Jesu, du edle Gabe’. On either side the partita is flanked by an arrangement by Bach of concertos by Vivaldi, and a chorale prelude on ‘Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier’. The album opens and closes with a Prelude and Fugue, in G major and C major respectively” (amazon.com).

New Era, Stamitz, Danzi, Mozart. Performed by Andreas Ottensamer.
“Andreas Ottensamer’s third solo album is dedicated to the Mannheim School: the 18th century melting pot of revolutionary musical experimentation. Attracting the best musicians from all over Europe, Mannheim became the birthplace of the modern orchestra and the source for the first great clarinet concertos. Featuring duets with his outstanding Berliner Philharmoniker colleagues Albrecht Mayer and Emmanuel Pahud, Andreas celebrates this new era of explosive, colourful and virtuosic music” (cover).

The Four Seasons, Christopher Simpson. Performed by Sirius Viols.
“Antonio Vivaldi was not the only composer of the Baroque who used the idea of the seasons to write his most popular work, they also inspired Christopher Simpson, the best viola da gamba virtuoso of the early English Baroque to use the theme for composition. Now Hille Perl and her ensemble, Sirius Viols, have recorded this colourful piece, a work abounding in dynamism, virtuosity and experimental verve. They guide the listener on a musical tour of icy winter, burgeoning spring and sultry summer all the way to multi-coloured autumn” (cover).

Now you can read eBooks or listen to eAudiobooks on library tablets. Check out the link below! Featured in this month’s Sight and Sound eNewsletter are documentaries on the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s most attended fashion exhibition in history, King Edward VIII at war, organ compilations and much more.

Library News

DVDs

This month’s new DVDs feature a doco on The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s most attended fashion exhibition in history; new comedy with David Brent & Bridget Jones; real life drama with Captain “Sully” Sullenberger; unconventional parenting with Viggo Mortensen; female investment banking with Anna Gunn; a Detective Superintendent’s journey to exact justice for the victims’ families with Gillian Anderson; and Western action with seven outlaws, bounty hunters, gamblers and hired guns.

The first Monday in May.
“The First Monday in May follows the creation of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s most attended fashion exhibition in history, China: Through The Looking Glass – an exploration of Chinese-inspired Western fashions by Costume Institute curator Andrew Bolton. With unprecedented access, filmmaker Andrew Rossi captures the collision of high fashion and celebrity at the Met Gala, one of the biggest global fashion events chaired every year by Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour. Featuring Rihanna and Jennifer Lawrence as well as fashion designers Karl Lagerfeld, Jean Paul Gaultier and John Galliano.” (Product Description, Amazon.co.uk)

Sully.
“On January 15, 2009, the world witnessed the “Miracle on the Hudson” when Captain “Sully” Sullenberger (Hanks) glided his disabled plane onto the frigid waters of the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 aboard. However, even as Sully was being heralded by the public and the media for his unprecedented feat of aviation skill, an investigation was unfolding that threatened to destroy his reputation and his career.” (Editorial Reviews, amazon.com)

Bridget Jones’s baby.
“After breaking up with Mark Darcy, Bridget Jones’s “happily ever after” hasn’t quite gone according to plan. Fortysomething and single again, she decides to focus on her job as top news producer and surround herself with old friends and new. For once, Bridget has everything completely under control. What could possibly go wrong? Then her love life takes a turn and Bridget meets a dashing American named Jack (Dempsey), the suitor who is everything Mr. Darcy is not. In an unlikely twist she finds herself pregnant, but with one hitch…she can only be fifty percent sure of the identity of her baby’s father.” (Product Description, amazon.co.uk)

The legend of Tarzan.
“It has been years since the man once known as Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard) left the jungles of Africa behind for a gentrified life as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, with his beloved wife, Jane (Margot Robbie) at his side. Now, he has been invited back to the Congo to serve as a trade emissary of Parliament, unaware that he is a pawn in a deadly convergence of greed and revenge, masterminded by the Belgian, Captain Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz). But those behind the murderous plot have no idea what they are about to unleash.” (Syndetics summary)

Audiobooks

Choose your favourite story to listen to while you are doing other things. Browse through some of our latest books on CD, featuring history, crime, romance and more… Have fun!

Princes at war : the bitter battle inside Britain’s Royal family in the darkest days of WWII / Deborah Cadbury.
“The personal lives of the British Royals were successfully kept out of the public eye by mutual agreement of the press and royal family, but this all changed in 1936 when King Edward VIII abdicated the throne and spurned his responsibility for the sake of the glamorous American socialite and divorcee, Wallis Simpson. In Princes at War, Deborah Cadbury reveals evidence that the Duke and Duchess of Windsor colluded with Hitler to take back the British throne from Edward’s younger brother, King George VI, should Germany prevail in the War. Drawing on new research and recently released files, Deborah Cadbury shows that not only did George VI have to battle to lead his country but battle constantly to keep his brothers, and especially his older brother, in check.” (Syndetics summary)

A spool of blue thread / Anne Tyler.
“It was a beautiful, breezy, yellow-and-green afternoon. . . This is how Abby Whitshank always begins the story of how she fell in love with Red that day in July 1959. The Whitshanks are one of those families that radiate togetherness: an indefinable, enviable kind of specialness. But they are also like all families, in that the stories they tell themselves reveal only part of the picture. Abby and Red and their four grown children have accumulated not only tender moments, laughter, and celebrations, but also jealousies, disappointments, and carefully guarded secrets. A Spool of Blue Thread tells a poignant yet unsentimental story in praise of family in all its emotional complexity. It is a novel to cherish.” (Syndetics summary)

Delicious! [sound recording] / Ruth Reichl.
“Billie Breslin has travelled far from her California home to take a job at Delicious , the most iconic food magazine in New York and, thus, the world. When the publication is suddenly shut down, the colourful staff, who have become an extended family for Billie, must pick up their lives and move on. Not Billie, though. She is offered a new job: staying behind in the magazine’s deserted downtown mansion offices to uphold the “Delicious Guarantee”–a public relations hotline for complaints and recipe inquiries–until further notice. What she doesn’t know is that this boring, lonely job will be the portal to a life-changing discovery.” (Syndetics summary)

The art whisperer / Charlotte and Aaron Elkins.
“When art conservator Alix London spots a forgery, she knows trouble will follow. So she’s understandably apprehensive when her connoisseur’s eye spots something off about a multimillion-dollar Jackson Pollock painting at Palm Springs’s Brethwaite Museum, her current employer. Alix is already under fire, the object of a vicious online smear campaign. But it s only when a hooded intruder attacks Alix in her hotel room that the real trouble begins. And when FBI Special Agent Ted Ellesworth with whom Alix had inadvertently, but thoroughly, botched a budding relationship just a year prior turns up to investigate the Pollock, Alix knows she s about to have her hands full. In her third mystery, Alix London must see through mirages in the desert to uncover the knotted history of the painting and save herself in the process.” (Syndetics summary)

eAudiobooks

What do exorcisms, flesh-eating ants and nuclear weapons disguised as dumplings have in common? They all feature in this selection of new fiction eAudiobooks from Overdrive! If you think a few flesh-eating ants might come in handy, be sure to sign up with Overdrive here.

Fields Where They Lay, by Timothy Hallinan
“It’s three days until Christmas and Junior Bender, Hollywood’s fast-talking fixer for the felonious, finds himself hired to solve a shoplifting problem at the run-down Edgerton Mall. But Junior’s surveillance operation doesn’t go well: two people are dead and it’s obvious that shoplifting is the least of the mall’s problems. To prevent further deaths, Junior must confront his dread of Christmas, both present and past.” (Adapted from the Overdrive description.)

The Gentleman from Japan, by James Church
“Under the guise of machinery for making dumplings, a Spanish factory is secretly producing a key component in the production of nuclear weapons. When information finds its way to Western intelligence agencies that this “dumpling maker” is meant for North Korea, orders go out that the shipment must be stopped. Inspector O is recruited to assist, leading him into a maze of cracked mirrors and deadly double blinds in his most elaborate mystery yet.” (Adapted from the Overdrive description.)

The Drowning Lesson, by Jane Shemilt
“The Jordan family thought they would return from their gap year abroad enriched, better people, a closer family. Not minus one child. A year on, Emma remains haunted by the image of that empty cot, thousands of miles away, the chasm between her and the rest of the family growing with each day that Sam remains missing. Is her son still out there? Will the mystery about what happened that night ever be unravelled?” (Adapted from the Overdrive description.)

Peaches for Monsieur le Curé, by Joanne Harris
“When Vianne Rocher receives a letter from beyond the grave, she has no choice but to follow the wind that blows her back to Lansquenet, the village in south-west France where, eight years ago, she opened up a chocolate shop. But Vianne is completely unprepared for what she finds there. Women veiled in black, the scent of spices and a minaret. Father Reynaud, Vianne’s erstwhile adversary, is now disgraced and under threat. Could it be that Vianne is the only one who can save him?” (Adapted from the Overdrive description.)

Classical CDs

This week among the new additions we found these interesting gems.

Rafał Blechacz, Johann Sebastian Bach.
“Rafał Blechacz, ‘a superlative pianist’ (BBC Music Magazine), further demonstrates his versatility in his first album devoted to Bach. Among the highlights of his wide-ranging programme are the Italian Concerto, one of Blechacz’s signature pieces (‘His reading was, above all, a model of textural transparency’ – Portland Press Herald), and the Partita No. 1 (‘It was immediately clear from the first sweet, liquid notes that Blechacz is a musician in service to the music, searching its depths, exploring its meaning and probing its possibilities’ – Washington Post)” (cover).

Flute Quartets, Mozart. Performed by the Brodsky Quartet and Lisa Friend.
“Members of the Brodsky Quartet meet the internationally famous flautist Lisa Friend in an album of key works of the flute repertoire: Mozart’s flute quartets. Highly praised for previous recordings, her own compositions, solo recitals in Europe, the US, and Asia, as well as appearances with prestigious orchestras, Lisa Friend devotes her very first recording on Chandos to witty, colorful interpretations or Mozart. The flute quartets of Mozart are central to the classical flute repertoire – and deservedly so: the composer’s characteristic charm, wit, beauty, and elegance are in evidence throughout” (amazon.com).

Voyages: Orgue de la Philharmonie de Paris. Performed by Olivier Latry.
Organ compilations are unique in that they are a recording of a specific instrument installed in a specific space. Olivier Latry says, “A space within a space, bonded for all time with the environment in which it is housed, the inherent rapport between the organ which we are about to hear and its surroundings means that it is without a shadow of doubt the soul of the Philharmonie. May the listener relax and be transported to rediscover universal music illuminated by an instrument with so many attributes” (cover).

Symphonies 4, 5, 6, Tchaikovsky. Performed by the Arctic Philharmonic.
The final three of Tchaikovsky’s variously-flavoured symphonies together on a 2 CD set, performed by the Arctic Philharmonic, who are indeed based within the Arctic circle (and are in fact the world’s northernmost orchestra).